No charges in shooting death of Salma Hayek’s dog
The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office reports that no charges have been filed in the fatal shooting of actress Salma Hayek’s dog near her ranch in Yelm.
The sheriff’s office reports that a neighbor shot the dog, but the shooting was justified. The case will be forwarded to the county prosecutor for review.
According to a recent post on Hayek’s Instagram account, her 9-year-old Belgian Malinois named Mozart was found dead on her ranch Feb. 19. Hayek’s ranch is located off Fennel Road about 3.5 miles southeast of Lake Lawrence, property records show.
A necropsy was conducted at Yelm Veterinary Hospital. The sheriff’s office reports that a pellet from a pellet gun traveled between two of Mozart’s ribs and nicked his pulmonary artery, causing fatal internal bleeding.
Mozart was one of two dogs following a caretaker around the ranch when the dogsran toward the sound of other dogs barking on a neighbor’s property on Kismet Lane Southeast. Mozart didn’t return and was later discovered dead on a trail.
A nearby property owner told the sheriff’s office that he shot one of the dogs with a pellet gun, but was unaware that the dog had been hit because the dog kept running after he fired. The neighbor said Hayek’s dogs were in his garage fighting with his two German shepherds and that he tried to scare them away.
Sheriff John Snaza said the neighbor was within his legal rights to shoot at the dogs. He said that dog owners are accountable for their dogs’ actions.
“At this time we do not see any criminal violation,” Snaza said at a press conference Monday at the Thurston County Courthouse. “We believe that the homeowner was only protecting his animals and not trying to purposely kill or maim a dog.”
Hayek is among the celebrity followers at Ramtha’s School of Enlightenment, located on 80 acres off State Route 510 in Yelm. Ramtha is a 35,000-year-old warrior spirit that school founder JZ Knight claims to channel. Students say the school has helped them improve their lives.
This story was originally published February 29, 2016 at 12:29 PM with the headline "No charges in shooting death of Salma Hayek’s dog."